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Slovenian slayer Primož Roglič sealed overall victory in the Vuelta a España Sunday, netting a fine second in the stage 21 time trial on the streets of Madrid.

The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider finished 30 seconds behind the Swiss champion Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ), but comfortably ahead of all of his general classification rivals on a flat, fast race against the clock.

“You just want to finish it off. It was tough. It was a fast one. I am happy,” he said.

“We know that Kung is strong in these type of flat time trials. I still wanted to push because otherwise it is worse. I am just enjoying it.”

Ben O’Connor continued his strong Vuelta form to take 11th, 28 seconds ahead of his nearest rival Enric Mas (Movistar Team).

That secured his second place overall on the final podium, his best-ever GC performance. He had previously taken fourth overall in the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France.

Roglič was smiling broadly at the finish, following up his overall wins in 2019, 2020 and 2021 and completing a remarkable recovery after a bad injury in July.

He crashed in the Tour de France and suffered a fracture to his back, raising questions about whether or not he would be able to line out in Spain.

He ultimately did so and aced the race, winning three stages and matching all-time record holder Roberto Heras with four GC victories.

He finished 2:36 ahead of O’Connor and 3:13 in front of Mas. Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) held on to fourth overall, 4:02 back.

Matthias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) and David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) were the only changes in the top twelve, with the former overtaking the latter for fifth overall.

Kung blazed around a flat, fast course perfectly suited to his talents. Remarkably, it was his first-ever grand tour stage win.

“It’s amazing, finally. I’ve been fighting for it for a very long time, and I really wanted the win today,” he said.

“I knew with the parcours you had to go out hard and just keep it together until the end. And that’s what I did. I suffered a lot today, but I think everyone did at the end of this hard Vuelta.

“I am just so happy that I got this win here at the Vuelta, my first grand tour stage win. It’s been a long time in the making.”

Defending champion Sepp Kuss finished up 14th overall in the race, 20:25 off the red jersey he won last year. Fellow American Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) had hoped to bookend his race with another big TT performance but was unable to replicate his stage one success.

He crashed during his effort and switched off once it became clear his chance was gone.

Instead it was Roglič who ran Küng closest. The TT victory wasn’t a priority, but rather bringing the overall title home.

“No words. It’s a lot of sacrificing, not just me, my family, my teammates,” he said. “I am just happy that I can do it and I appreciate it. And for the support I can do it for the people.

“It’s crazy. Already four,” he added, referring to the number of Vuelta titles now on his palmares.

More to follow soon …